The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1887-09-21
THE ANARCHIST WARFARE.

We are having outbreak of lawlessness,
or rather an outbreak of lawless spirit. The
class of human offscourings known as An
archists evidently intend to work for all 1t is
worth the opportunity furnished by the de-
cision Of the Illinois Supreme Court in the
case of the Chicago convicts. The long delay
in the enforcement of the law has given them
time to rally, and they are now preparing to
make an open fight for the defeat of justice.
The history of the world affords no parallel to
the spectacle of these social outlaws, political
refugees, fugitives from justice, enemies OF
law and order that have been spawned upon
our shores from the slums of foreign coun-
tries, taking. advantage of the license of
laws to declare against society and faunt
the red flag of anarchism in the face
of a government whose worst fault Is
that it is too lenient with such mis-
crea nts. For outrageous audacity and
indecency their recent attacks on the Illinois
courts and their violent and incendiary APP
peels to the people are without precedent. 1t
is enough to make the blood of every honest
American boil to read the VIE mouthings of
these unhung scoundrels who have left their
country for their country's good and sought
shelter under a free government only to be-
slime its principles and make its insti-
tutions. This country and humanity at large
would be the gamer if the whole crew, with
all their belongings, could be sorralled and
scourged across the continent into or the
he nd
i've part of their appeal is the assumption that
the condemned Anarchists are representatives
of labor, and that these blatant propagandists
of murder have right to speak for the work
ingmen. In fact, they dare to do it. 1t is an
insult to every honest workingman
that lives. Not one of them ever did an hon
est days work in his life. In their call for
meeting in New York they said prominent
advocates Of the labor will speak in
| English and German" The labor cause in
| deed If the cause of labor in this country
| has fallen into the keeping of such hands it is
lost cause. Nevertheless it must be adj
mitted, with shame and surprise, that some
| labor organizations have shown and are show
ing a disposition TO join in this crusade for the
| liberation of the condemned Anarchists. The
| strength of the movement is not yet fully
| developed but we refuse to believe that any
| considerable or appreciate number of Ameri-
| can workingmen will join in it. In some of
the large cities there are foreigners enough
| who can be stampeded into that kind of a
movement to raise clamor, but as at
present advised we do not believe
| any considerable number of Ameri-
can workingmen can be induced to
join it. But if they do, what then? Simply
this: If be issue is made it must be met.
The question whether the government was
strong enough to assert it's right to exist and
whether it was worth fighting for, has been
raised and decided once already, and If the
| issue is forced it must be met and settled
| again As for the effect on the cause Of labor
and on workngmen's organizations of identi-
flying them with the Anarchists, nothing
could be more disastrous 1t would be ruin
Gus to BOTH invoking for them not merely the
profound contempt but the active hostility of
all classes of honest loyal and conservative
men. Under such storm of obloquy this
would raise, "the cause of labor" as it is
called, would suffer an eclipse from which it
would not emerge for generations. If tne
labor organizations espouse the cause of the
Anarchists they viii not only invite but COM
pei new classification of the forces of society,
in which all of the conservative sentiment and
all the public sympathy that have heretofore
sided with the just demands of labor will be
completely estranged.